Ipswich Town U18s were in action against AFC Bournemouth at Playford Road last Saturday, so with no first-team game, Ross Halls went down to cover them.
The young Blues mainly play their games on Saturday mornings, so it's very rare for me to get a chance to watch a game - here are my five takeaways from their 3-2 defeat...
THRILLING GAME
It was a chilly morning down at the training ground, but myself and the other spectators were treated to a fantastic game full of goals and chances.
The visitors opened the scoring in the first few minutes via Jonny Day, but Town hit back straight away when Charlie Compton put Ashton Boswell through on goal and he calmly slotted past the keeper.
However, quickfire goals followed for the Cherries as first-half substitute Kash Kasukumya bagged himself a brace to give his side a two-goal lead.
The young Blues did respond well from going behind though as they pushed to get back into the game for rest of the first half with Compton hitting the crossbar.
Town pulled a goal back ten minutes after the restart when defender George Chenery headed home from Boswell's corner.
They were on top for most of the second half and they had multiple chances but couldn't find an equaliser.
Overall, a draw would have been a fair result but Town couldn't get through the stubborn Bournemouth defence.
STANDOUT PLAYERS
Of course, plenty of these youngsters are in the early stages of their journeys in football with many impressing on this outing, starting with the captain Luke Towler, who bossed the midfielder and was close to scoring in the second half. He featured for the U21s last month.
Forward Boswell was a threat on the right wing throughout the game, taking on his defenders and put in some good deliveries from corners. He took his goal well.
Another attacking player to mention is Compton, who played in the number 10 role and got himself an assist for the first Town goal. He was very composed on the ball and brings great box-to-box qualities with his technical ability.
Substitute Bobby Sains impressed when he came into the midfield and nearly scored an equaliser with a long range effort. He became a full-academy player this season.
There was a trialist for Town in the form of left-winger Thierry Stewart, who was previously in the Fulham academy. He had strong outing, so I wouldn't be surprised if he remains at the club for another game.
SQUAD AS A WHOLE
Overall, it's hard to just pick out of few players as everyone put in a shift so let's take a look at the other players in the side.
Starting with goalkeeper Josh Bentley, who did well making some key saves, despite conceding three goals. He is the younger brother of Dan, who is the third choice keeper at fellow Premier League side Wolves.
Centre-backs Fraser Heard and Chenery played well throughout, winning their battles and showed their ability of the ball. They both were a threat at set-pieces.
Midfielder George Iorpenda played well alongside Towler, he brought the ball forward and battled in the middle of the park.
Full-backs Leon Elliott and Darragh McCann, who joined the club from Crystal Palace and Glentoran respectively this summer, did their jobs well going forward and defensively.
Another new signing in winger Shakil Nicolaou was lively down the left, having joined the Blues from the Spurs academy. He showed his silky skills and was always happy to take on players.
Forward Jamie Mauge was the lone striker. He had a tough game coming up against a strong opposition defence, but put in a shift to make room for his wide players.
Fellow striker William Unadike came off the bench to make an impact. He came close to scoring at the end but his chance was saved by the keeper.
SEASON SO FAR
The young Blues currently sit seventh in the in Professional Development League Two South, winning four of their 13 league games so far.
Overall, it's been a mixed bag season, with them losing their opening two matches against Sheffield United and Crewe, before securing their first win of the season away at Hull City.
In total, they've scored 28 goals and conceding 34 in some high scoring games, including 3-3 draws with Barnsley and Watford.
They suffered a 5-0 defeat at home to Bristol City last month, but responded well from that as they secured a 4-1 victory over Swansea City.
Next up they travel to QPR, who are bottom of the table and will take on Bournemouth once again as they've been drawn away against them in the third round of the FA Youth Cup.
A MANAGER NEEDED
Town are currently in the process in appointing a new U18s manager, with David Wright and Matt Pooley taking charge in the interim after Olly Lee departed the club to join Norwich City to work with their U21s set-up.
Lee had only been at Town since the start of the year after he took over from Callum Tongue, who departed in November last year for a recruitment role at Manchester United.
Sam Darlow had previously been in the role, but left the club last summer to coach at Nottingham Forest in their U18 and U21s set-ups. Darlow had succeeded the long-serving Adem Atay, who worked at Town as a coach for 14 years.
Atay left Town to join Aston Villa in July 2022, working with their U18s, but opted to leave them at the end of last year, but is now working at Norwich with their U16s.
The club appointed a new academy director in August as Dmitri Halajko replaced Dean Wright, who stepped down from his job at the end of last season in order to move back to his native north.
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